


Mistakes & Misunderstandings

by papuko



Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: F/M, Female Pronouns for Pidge | Katie Holt, First Kiss, First Love, Hunk & Lance (Voltron) Friendship, Hunk (Voltron) is so Pure, M/M, Minor Klance, Near Death Experiences, Pining Hunk (Voltron), Punk, Soft keith, YellowGreen, hidge, minor shatt, team punk, vld
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-06
Updated: 2018-06-22
Packaged: 2019-05-03 05:18:06
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 4,991
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14561718
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/papuko/pseuds/papuko
Summary: The Paladins of Voltron are still in their fight against the Galra and Haggar has something that can give them a really bad headache and put their lives in danger if they don't solve it quickly.A young Paladin gets wounded up in a fight and reconsiders his feelings for his fellow Paladin.He is going to tell her the truth... but will it be too late?





	1. Protection

**Author's Note:**

> This is my first fic ever and I wanted to dedicate this to @ladymac111 and @i-write-shakespeare-not-disney who wrote the best Hidge fics I've read so far. They inspired me to write it and the others fics I'm going to write.  
> And a huge special thanks to all Hidge/Punk stans (who make lovely content about the best ship ever) and to my friends who encouraged me. 
> 
> Well, this fic takes place 3 years after the start of the show. Pidge's about the make 18. 
> 
> PS: Sorry for my poor English vocabulary and grammar mistakes, it's not my native language. I'm doing my best, I swear.  
> But I hope you all can enjoy it anyway! <3 Be kind to me, please :3 hahaha

They were facing a battle near the Karthullian System. Coran and Allura were assisting from the castle and the five Paladins of Voltron were in their lions, fighting against Sendak one more time. Haggar developed a device that created a huge interference, therefore, the paladins weren't able to form Voltron, and even the lions themselves couldn't perform at their full potential. Pidge was trying to scan all over the enemy ship, and the lions, hoping she could find that device, but it was unsuccessfully.

"Paladins, come back to the castle! Let's retreat for now until we find out how to fight back” Allura ordered, clearly afflicted.

"All right!" everybody agreed as they were making their way back to the ship.

Suddenly, Lance detected they were being targeted. "Uh, guys, they will attack again. There's a canon coming out of the ship and it seems ready to shoot right in our direction. Protect yourselves!"

"No way! Not again!" without any warning, Hunk turned around and made his way straight to the canon.

"HUNK, NO! GET BACK!" Shiro shouted.

"Guys, you go ahead. I'm pretty sure Yellow can handle this one attack" he responded, not showing any signs that he would change his mind.

"But, Hunk..." Keith tried to argue.

"Just go! I'll reach you guys in a moment," he affirmed. ”I’ll just end this canon so it can’t annoy us for a while”

Hunk was already plugging his Bayard so he could shoot using the Yellow Lion's own canon. But in the heat of the moment, he totally forgot the communication with the Lions were a little off and when he realized, it was too late, the beam of light was already on his way.

"Oh, quiznack!" he cursed.

The beam of light hit the Yellow Lion.

“HUNK!” All the other Paladins screamed together.

The Lion had received all the impact from the shoot and it hurled them in the paladins' direction, who were relatively near the castle. Thanks to that, Coran was able to use the tractor beam to get the Yellow Lion back so they could leave.

“The Paladins are in! The Yellow Lion is on board as well!”, Coran informed.

“Let’s go!”, Allura said while opening a wormhole, which was leading them to a safe spot that was under the protection of the Blade of Marmora.

Once they were at the Lions’ room, they all ran off towards the Yellow Lion, which was clearly damaged and knocked down at its usual place. Lance was, of course, the first one to get in the Lion’s control cabin, shouting, hoping his friend would answer, but instead, he found Hunk unconscious in his seat with bleeding on his face.

“Hunk...HUNK!!! Buddy, wake up!!!” he screamed desperately while he was taking off the Yellow Paladin's helmet. Lance sat by his side and started shaking his big body waiting for a response.

Pidge got in a few moments later, barely breathing, and sat by the other side of Hunk’s seat, watching Lance’s attempts to wake their friend. She grabbed Hunk’s arm looking for vital signs, luckily they were there, only weaker than normal. Although she was worried sick, she tried her best to keep calm at the same time she tried to calm Lance. “Lance, he’s alive. Please, calm yourself!”

Shiro and Keith got in next, also worried about their fellow paladin. “How is he?” Shiro asked.

“Fine, just unconscious. There are some wounds but nothing seems serious!” Pidge answered with a smile on her face.

"That's g…”

“I WILL BELIEVE IT WHEN THE BIG GUY TALKS TO ME.” Lance interrupted Shiro, yelling and making a scene.

“Lance, please, stop it!” Keith said while softly grabbing Lance’s shoulder. “Pidge said he’s fine. That’s good for now!”

Lance took a deep breath and focused on trying to be quiet for a moment, without releasing Hunk’s arm. "Okay. I’m sorry. It’s just...” he sighed, “Hunk has been my friend since forever. I don’t know what I’d do if anything bad happened to my big bro here” Lance said to Keith with his eyes full of tears.

“I know the feeling. None of us would know what to do without him too” Keith smiled at Lance in the sweetest way possible.

Suddenly, a very weak voice reached them. “Awww, guys. I’m getting very emotional!” Hunk joked. His eyes were still shut, but he was giving them a soft smile.

All the other Paladins instantly looked back to their friend, who was trying to regain his consciousness.

“Hunk…” Pidge and Lance said. The Blue Paladin let his arm go and gave him a tight hug while the Green Paladin was wiping away the tears she was trying to hide since all this mess started.

Little by little Hunk was opening his eyes. He could only see the top of Lance’s head, who was still immersed in the hug and seemed to refuse to leave Hunk's chest. He looked up and saw Keith sliming while watching that scene. 

A moment later, Lance finally released his friend from the hug and wiped the tears away as Hunk finally got his eyes fully open. He perceived the presence of the other Paladins and instantly turned his attention to Pidge. She didn’t stop smiling since the moment he woke up, her eyes were still teary. He kept looking and smiling at her, finding the strength to raise his hand to caress that little face and to gently squeezed her cheek.

That quiet moment was over soon enough, interrupted by a loud furious Lance “How could you do that, man? I thought you were smarter than this!”

“Lance” Shiro shouted. “That’s enough!”. He walked from behind the seat and stood in front of Hunk so he could talk to him. “We are glad you’re okay!” he patted Hunk’s shoulder and smiled, but his face suddenly turned into a serious face as he continued “However, you were pretty reckless. I know the Yellow Lion is the one that can stand the attacks better, but you must have more caution the next time!”

Hunk was very serious while listening to Shiro, he faced the Voltron leader and then looked at each one of his friends. He lowered his head and looked disappointed at himself “I’m sorry, guys. I had a lot in my mind and… I didn’t want any of you to get hurt. I thought I was gonna be fine but I forgot the problems with the Lions and… I’m so so so sorry.”

Keith stepped up and smiled at Hunk. “Everything is fine, you don’t need to apologize this much. Just don’t forget: we’re a team, buddy!” Hunk lifted his head up and smiled back at Keith.

“Can you walk?” Pidge asked.

“I guess so. I think I just need a little help,” he answered. “I’m feeling a little dizzy.”

Lance and Keith offered to help and Hunk took their arms but it took some seconds before he could actually get up, he was feeling weak, but he did it and they all left the Yellow Lion’s cabin.

As they were getting out of the Lion’s room, Coran and Allura showed up, running to meet the paladins. “ What happened there, Hunk? Are you out of your mind?” Allura questioned.

Hunk took a deep breath before he started explaining himself to Allura, but before he could say anything Shiro stepped in and said “No need to worry, Princess. We had a communication problem, but we already set things straight.”

“Thanks to King Alfor you are fine. All of you.” Coran smiled, looking really relieved.

Allura turned her angry look to Hunk one more time. “Nevertheless, your actions were not wise at all and could have costed us the Yellow Lion. This could have compromised all the Rebellion if anything worse would've happened. Do you understand it?”

Hunk was feeling so embarrassed and wanted to cry - it was no secret to anyone he was that emotional. She never talked to him that way before. He couldn’t look Allura in the eyes. He held the tears and searched the words to say “I am sorry, Princess.” he sighed “I will be more careful with the Yellow Lion. The last thing I want to do is ruin everything we fought through these years and not help those who need to be freed from the Galra Empire”.

Silence took over the room for a few seconds until Lance broke it. “Well, Hunk needs to go to his room to get some rest now, before he tries to be the hero one more time.” he said, smiling to Hunk.

“Aren’t you going to the healing pod?” a worried Coran asked.

“I don’t think it’s necessary, Coran. Maybe the next time" he smiled. "I just need a good night's sleep to recover. The bleeding has already stopped and I just have a minor headache” Hunk declared.

“Are we going to stand here all day or can we take you to your room, Your Majesty?” Lance joked as Hunk laughed and nodded to him. 

The three of them made their way back to the Yellow Paladin’s room, but he suddenly stopped and turn his head back. “Hey, Pidge!” he called and she raised her head. “I want to talk to you about something;” right after he said that, Lance immediately looked at him with surprise. “Can we do this as soon as I’m awake?”.

The little Paladin answered with a smile “Sure!”. Hunk smiled at her and started walking. As she was watching the boys leave, she was feeling fine, but something about the way he spoke did scare her a little. They’ve been friends for years, best friends for that matter, but he never spoke like that to her, not that way. All she could do at the moment was wait. 

When they got a good distance from the others, Lance whispered: “Are you going to tell her what I think you are?” Hunk nodded.” Whoa. Finally!” Lance laughed. 

Keith looked quite thoughtful after Hunk's speech to Pidge and stood in silence all the way to the room until they got there.

Lance and Keith left Hunk at his room's door. “Do you need anything else, buddy?” the Blue Paladin asked.

“Nah, I’m good. Thank you for escorting me, I felt really important. See you guys after my beauty sleep” he smiled and got in while Lance and Keith waved their hands and walked away.

As they were walking, Keith froze in the middle of the hallway. He was blushing and couldn’t take his eyes off Lance “Hey, Lance?”

Lance turned his head to Keith. His heart skipped a beat and when he noticed how Keith was blushed, his face turned red instantly. “Wh...Wh…” he coughed to disguise. “What’s the problem, Mullet?”

“Can I talk to you about something?” Keith’s face turned all red, the same as his Lion, once he grabbed one of Lance’s hands. 

“Su-sure” Lance was trembling but he took Keith’s hand. They smiled at each other and headed for the lounge.


	2. Confession

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hunk wakes up from his rest and seeks the courage to talk about his feelings, but things don't always work the way we want them to.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> It's been a while, sorry for taking so long to post this chapter. For reasons I'll never understand I got insecure to post it and just left it aside. But Chapter 2 is here!
> 
> I have more 4 chapters almost ready to go and I think there'll be about 10 in the end. 
> 
> Forgive me for the grammar mistakes once again xD I swear I'm trying my best.

Hunk woke up in the afternoon of the next day. He was still feeling dizzy while he tried to remember everything that happened in the battle the previous day, still feeling a little frustrated for all his actions and for letting his comrades down and he kept staring at the ceiling until he felt he was good to get off of the bed. Suddenly, he remembered what he told Pidge and all his face turned to red. What should he do now? He was going to tell Pidge about his feelings, he needed to, but he just didn’t know how. Maybe he should ask Lance for some advice before he did anything, he really was lost about it.

 

After he spent some time wondering about it,  he decided to just go to her and start talking. The boy left his bed and his comfy pajamas, took a quick shower, put his original clothing back and rearranged some things he had left out of place before they got into battle. 

 

It took a while before he could actually leave his room, he was building up his strength to do so, but he just sighed in frustration.  _ DAMN IT. WHY WAS IT SO HARD? _ . He and Pidge talked about anything, sometimes for hours and hours until someone asked them to shut the fuck up (especially Lance, who never understood scientific terms and got lost in their talks). Hunk shook his head, took a deep breath, puffed out his chest and left his room straight to Pidge’s lab (he thought about going to her room, but know her and her routine, he knew that she would probably be at her lab).

Entering the lab, he instantly relaxed and instantly that put a soft smile over his face. There she was, working to figure out a way to cancel the witch’s device. She was 100% sure now that it was on board of the Galra cruiser they faced, probably at the control room, as some members of the Blade of Marmora confirmed. She kept running her researches tirelessly and when she was done, she sent them to Coran so he could analyze them with the help of Allura to discover something that would help them. She cracked her knuckles while stretching up and when she turned, she found her friend standing at the entrance, looking at her in a sweet way.

 

The dork in love got lost in his own thoughts. One of his favorite things was to watch Pidge as she worked, he could do it for hours, watching her as he acted like a crazy scientist and had a million genius ideas that only the incredible Katie Holt would be able to have. He loved how smart she was, _geez_ , he thought it was so cute. Her intellect would probably be his fave feature about her if it wasn’t for her eyes, those amber eyes behind her glasses made him lose his breath every single time. Yep. He definitely loved her, and, more than that, he really needed to tell her.

 

“Hey! You got up.” she said while she got up her chair and went to where he was standing to give him a hug. She was not a huge fan of physical contact, but she was so comfortable around Hunk she got used to it - she didn't admit it, but she loved the Yellow Paladin’s hugs, she felt smaller when he hugged her, but it was so warm and nice. He hugged her back, even though she was almost 3 years older from when they first met, she never grew up as much as she would like to. She was a little bit taller… just a little bit. Letting him out of the hug she asked “How are you feeling? Did you get a nice rest?”.

  
“I’m better than ever” He replied to her while trying to imitate Lance when he tried to impress someone with silly _macho man_ poses, but he dropped the pose as soon as he felt a pain on his head and rubbed his neck “I still have a minor headache though”. He laughed at himself trying to disguise how silly he was feeling for that attempt. Happily, Pidge smiled back at him. _God_ , that smile made his whole body weak.

 

“I’m happy you’re okay. You really got us worried” she said.

 

“Sorry for that again!” he lowered his head and she nodded back as a response. 

 

She turned herself to gather a few things that were on a table near her and Hunk was building up the courage to talk to her about his feelings. Before he could say anything he took a deep breath and started talking a little to low. “So… Pidge… Do you remember that I…?”.

 

He was interrupted by Pidge, he was talking so low that she did not hear him at all. “I’m thinking about going to the kitchen. I’ve been here since early in the morning and didn’t have a chance to eat and now I’m starving. Would you like to come with me?”.

 

“Of course” he replied a little sadly. The words had slipped and he lost his courage at that moment. They were still there, there were just a little hard to come out. 

 

While they were heading to the Castle’s kitchen, Pidge was gossiping about how she caught Lance and Keith making out last night at the lounge, it seemed that now they were boyfriends after Keith confessed to Lance “In fact, Keith told me this morning that he kinda of owed it to you. It seems that you inspired him someway”. Hunk blushed, so Keith was paying attention to their talk. But how did the Red Paladin know about his crush on Pidge? Was it that obvious? He had only told Lance about it… and the mice may have heard something too. Anyway, he was happy for them, especially for Lance, he had this crush on Keith ever since their rivalry at the Garrison - although he was almost sure Keith had a crush on the Blue Paladin that time as well. He smiled softly at the thought of the two of them together and hoped that his confession would end as well as Keith’s.

 

Right after she finished telling him the news, none of them said anything else. Hunk was walking a little slow, still feeling dizzy from the battle, but his head so full of thoughts wasn’t helping either. He lowered his head in frustration, his anxiety had never allowed him to be confident, it was very hard for him to speak up something that important. He almost gave up his confession as he was walking beside her, thinking she would never want any kind of relationship with him, that he wasn’t good enough for her. She was so incredible, so stunning. He was just… Hunk, the nice guy. He did not believe that she would ever consider him as something else. 

 

Once they arrived at the kitchen, Pidge offered to grab him a bowl of Space Goo which he accepted and thanked her for that. He sat at the table, still lost in his thoughts. A few moments later Pidge handed him the bowl and a spoon, right before she sat in front of him and they both started eating and he thanked her one more time. 

  
The problem was that Hunk couldn’t eat much, hungry as he was after spending a whole day resting without eating anything, he just kept gazing at the goo. All he wanted to do was to set those words free from his chest. He had kept them for so long, more than he wanted to admit. Trying to keep calm, he swallowed a couple of spoons with only a little bit of goo and returned to face the green food as he remained deep in his thoughts.

 

Pidge was almost finishing her meal as she saw that Hunk nearly ate his, she was starting to get worried about him, he was not behaving as usual. From all the people she knew, Hunk would be the last one to refuse a nice fresh bowl of Space goo. She had never seen her friend like that, he looked so serious, yet too worried. She got used to that smiling, joyful Hunk, making silly faces and brightening up every corner of the Castle. She was wondering what could possibly be going through his mind at that moment. 

 

Feeling he was being watched, he realized he had been wandering for a while. He rose his head taking a deep breath, trying to regain his courage. He and Pidge had gone through so many things together, he needed to tell her. He was afraid something would happen to him and he could not tell her anything more, and he knew he would regret it profoundly. 

 

The Green Paladin noticed that her friend had started to move again and before she could ask him if he was fine, he sighed and started talking serenely as he looked her in the eyes, those eyes who inspired him so much. “Katie?”

 

She froze for a moment. All these years hanging out together, he only called her by her name in extremely serious times. She got herself together and replied to him, her heart still beating fast on her chest. “Yes?” she gave him a soft, yet worried smile.

 

His cheeks warmed while he still looked at her “Do you remember yesterday when I told you I needed to say you something?”.

 

Her mind clicked at the thought and her voice was trembling a bit “I do”. She was very worried, his face was really serious and even though he was speaking so calmly he looked pretty tense.

 

“Well…” he blushed even more “There’s something I’ve been meaning to tell you for a while. I was always too afraid to do it, but after what happened I need to get this off my chest before something happens and I would never be in peace for never telling that… to you”. He kept saying as he took another long deep breath.

 

Pidge was apprehensive about that speech. What could he possibly say that was that important it could not wait anymore?. “So…?” she asked, still trying to keep herself calm. 

 

Another deep breath. The closer the confess was he got more and more anxious. It seemed like he was about to throw up, remembering him of those times the got sick every single time he was on a ship. “Before I can go on with this, I know that the time isn’t ideal and the whole situation we’re at does not help too, but…” he sighed “well, I know you probably would never want to get involved with a big fat clumsy guy like me and I have nothing to offer you…”, Pidge’s heart skipped a beat as he lowered his head, really embarrassed. An intense heat took over his whole body “I also know we’re in the middle of a war that seems to be endless and this could be really silly and small, compared to defending the universe and stuff, but Katie, what I mean is…” he choked on his own words. 

 

Pidge wasn’t blinking, at all, she was paralyzed. You didn’t have to be a genius to know what was coming up next, but she was disoriented, confused in all the thoughts on her head, none of them seemed to make sense. She was breathless, all her training and experience as a Paladin didn’t prepare her for a moment like that.

 

“I love you, Katie Holt.” he said while looking deeply at those open wide eyes. “Before I do something stupid again that might compromise my lion, the Team, the Rebellion” he stopped and softly held her hand, “and most of all...you.” he completed. “I’m afraid I might… die… during some mission or fight. But now I’m more afraid of living a life without you in it.”. Hearing the words he just said, he got embarrassed one more time and continue as his voice was trembling “N...Not that I’m hoping you take and accept everything I just said all of sudden, or that you would feel the same.” he smiled softly at her, which made her blush as he continued “But I don’t want to live without the most wonderful person in the world,  dare I say, in the whole universe” he laughed at himself. “I just hope that I’ll never lose your friendship, whatever your feelings are. After all, we’re the best duo around here, right, Team Punk?” he finished with a giggle.  

 

It was to much information for her to process. Hunk was clearly troubling with all those words and everything made her a lot more confused. Aside from her family, she was never too affectionate with people. Not that she was cold or something like that, on the contrary, she nurtured a deep caring for everyone on the Team Voltron and the friends she made along the way, but she had never considered any kind of romantic relationship with nobody… ever. Having a boyfriend or girlfriend was never a thought on her mind, that kind of feeling seemed to not belong to he so far. And of course, she loved Hunk, very much so. He was her best friend and she felt very comfortable around him, they did everything together and she was very caring about him, but she wasn’t sure if it was a romantic feeling. 

 

As she started to process every single word he said, she got shocked. What was that talk about dying? Did he really say that? Was he that pessimist? And did he think she would be so shallow that she would step away from him because of those feelings he had? She started to feel a little offended by some things in the middle of the confusion that was her head at that moment. 

 

Silence took over the kitchen. Hunk’s face changed from an awkward smile to a slightly sad face as Pidge kept staring at the void for some minutes as if she had seen a ghost. He was getting a lot more anxious, but he didn’t want to force anything to happen, but he was getting worried about her. He just subtle waved his hand in front of her eyes trying to get any response from her “Hum… Pidge?” he whispered. 

  
She heard Hunk’s voice but it seemed so far far away while she still was lost in all that information. After she was done, she shook her head and looked back at him. For some reason, that even she didn’t know, tears started to fill her eyes and she lost her composure and started to speak in a higher tone that she used to, almost screaming “Did you think I’d be that shallow to just get you out of my life only because of that? And here’s another question, why are you talking about dying, Hunk? We’re not going to die! We’re all gonna get stronger and stronger until we can defeat Haggar, Sendak and all the bad guys out there, so we can finally bring peace back to the universe and return to our families back at Earth. DO NOT speak like that again, please. Promise me!” in the end, she was indeed yelling, but she took a deep breath and tried to calm herself down.

 

“I promise, Katie.” he said, calling her by her name so she knew he was serious about it.

 

When she was calm enough to keep talking she blushed a little because of the question she was about to make “And this all of a sudden. Since when?… you know…”. 

  
“Since we met at the Garrison, I mean, at that time it was just a crush, but ever since we started working together here in the Castle I realized how much I care about you…” he paused and sighed “I mean, care about more than just my best friend” he smiled at her. Even if he wanted to hide how red his face was, he probably couldn’t. Anyone could see how embarrassed he was. 

 

“We have been working together for almost 3 years now…” she said with a low voice.

  
  
“Yep, That’s about right” he confirmed. 

 

Pidge felt her heart running faster and faster by every word he was saying, she felt that it would jump out her chest any moment now. “Why have you never said anything before?” she frowned as she looked at him.  

 

“Before, it sounded wrong somehow, and then it seemed that was never the right time to do so”. He got a little serious as he continued “But after what happened yesterday, I decided not to care about it anymore. When I woke up and saw you there by my side, I couldn’t be happier… because you were alive and well! And… ARGH… I care so much about you, Pidgey” he smiled in the sweetest way possible. 

 

Both of them were redder than they could ever be, even redder than the Red Lion itself. 

 

It was so silent until Pidge herself found something she could say “Hunk, I… I don’t know what to say.” she lowered her head and kept staring at the bowl in front of her “This is all of a sudden to me, and I, just don’t know. I’m sorry.” that said, she meant she was sorry by her confusion at that moment, but Hunk was too damn sensitive and anxious, so he came to the conclusion that she was, indeed, rejecting his feelings once and for all. 

 

He got up, relied on the table and looked at her, tears building up in his eyes as he smiled gently, although his voice sounded shaky “I understand, Pidge.” he sighed “I just wanted you to know” he said as he made his way to the exit, without looking at her again.

 

It took a while before Pidge realized the conclusion Hunk got from her talk. She knew him very well and had already figured out what he was thinking. She got up as well and ran towards him, holding his left arm when she reached him, what had seemed to froze him. “Hunk, I don’t…” she tried to say.

 

Before she could say anything else, he turned back at her and tapped her shoulder gently “It’s okay Pidge. It really is. I understand it.”. He turned his face away from her and continued “I must tell Shiro and the others that I’m up and well and then I need to take care of Yellow, I need to apologize to it too”. That said, he left the kitchen until Pidge couldn’t see him anymore.

 

She was still speechless and couldn’t impose herself on him to try to explain her thoughts. She was alone in the kitchen when she let out a deep sigh “You do not understand, that’s not what I meant”. 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I promise I won't take so long to post the next chapter ;3;
> 
> The next 2 chapters will be posted separately, but they will happen at the same time (ish).
> 
> Hope you're enjoying it so far ;3; I love writing about them <3

**Author's Note:**

> Well, that's it! I really hope you liked this chapter. 
> 
> I have some chapters almost ready, I just have to fix them and put it all together. 
> 
> WARNING: There will be a lot of drama.


End file.
